Emerald Green: A Panoramic Review

*Note: There will be spoilers here for the first two books in the series, Ruby Red and Sapphire Blue. You can read my reviews of those here and here.

 
"Gwen has a destiny to fulfill, but no one will tell her what it is. She’s only recently learned that she is the Ruby, the final member of the time-traveling Circle of Twelve, and since then nothing has been going right. She suspects the founder of the Circle, Count Saint-German, is up to something nefarious, but nobody will believe her. And she’s just learned that her charming time-traveling partner, Gideon, has probably been using her all along. This stunning conclusion picks up where Sapphire Blue left off, reaching new heights of intrigue and romance as Gwen finally uncovers the secrets of the time-traveling society and learns her fate." (from Goodreads) 

Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier

My reaction: I read it in a day, so it's safe to say I was pretty into it! It was certainly better than Sapphire Blue. Of the three, this one focuses the most on the mythology of the Circle of Twelve and the philosopher's stone. On the flip side, though, there wasn't as much experience of the historical atmospheres and costumes (and very little fencing!), which was a bit of a bummer since I always like reveling in the historical side of things. Like in the first two books, the humour here is light and gentle, not taking itself too seriously or trying too hard.

Gwen and Gideon are super cute, especially once they get over their big misunderstanding (begun in Sapphire Blue) and bond together. Just generally the characters are lively, and I grew to quite like Gwen in this one. She didn't act as ditzy as she did in the previous books.

Best aspect: I am impressed by how Kerstin Gier really embraced the time travel concept; the plotline relies heavily on the fact that Gideon and Gwen go back in time, meet people, gain knowledge, and manipulate things. Of course, I'm sure there are a whole bunch of holes in reasoning — such is the nature of the time travel beast — and in the case of Emerald Green in particular it gets very convoluted. I couldn't keep all the back-and-forth time travelling and the sequence of events straight (although I think I got the main gist of how things were handled at the end). Nevertheless, it was neat the way the author so thoroughly utilized the mechanism she'd set up for time travel to enable her characters to solve the mystery involving the Count's search for immortality. 

If I could change something... I'd give it a stronger ending. I was a little disappointed with the present-day villain reveal (spoiler: I didn't guess it was Mr. Whitman, but I was expecting it to be someone who seemed very innocent, and quite frankly we'd gotten lots of warnings about how creepy he was!) and I thought there should have been more denouement. The ending came off as rather abrupt, and I wanted more closure (in particular I wanted to know what happened to the villain). I also thought the way the climactic scene was set up was kind of cheesy (spoiler: Gideon getting shot and then it turning out that he'd swallowed a potion of the philosopher's stone) and not as epic as I was hoping for. I would have liked something that involved all the Guardians, and that never materialized; instead the focus was just on Gideon and Gwen. Overall it seemed like the ending was wrapped up in a slapdash sort of fashion, as though the author had spent less time on the final chapters than the rest of the book.

I also wish some of the side characters — the gargoyle, Great-Aunt Maddy, Gwen's siblings, Charlotte — had been given more of a role to play, plotwise. It seems like many of them were mostly there for comedic effect. I thought Gwen and Gideon should have involved one of the Guardians they thought they could trust; they rely on this or that Guardian at very specific times, but I feel like they should have had a mentor.
 

If you haven't read it: read the first two books before you read this one! Even if you've already read them, a re-read might be a good idea to refresh your memory. It'd been a while since I'd read the first two, so during my read of Emerald Green I was kind of shaky on some of the names and details of the world-building.

If you have read it: I don't understand something spoilery — how were Lucy and Paul able to escape to the past and live there? Did they stop aging at that point? Gwen meets them and they're really young... so are they immortal too? How are they able to elapse for that long without getting sick? I'm not sure if this issue was addressed and I just don't remember, or if it was never fully explained. Anyone else have an answer to this?

Just one more thing I want to mention: the other reveal (spoiler: that Lucy and Paul are Gwen's parents) was not very shocking for me, as that possibility had crossed my mind at least a couple times earlier in the series. 

Quote (from the ARC): 

"That's just what I don't know! What ought I to beware of?"

"Pastrami sandwiches, for one thing, and too much sunlight. It's bad for the complexion," said Lady Tilney firmly—and then she blurred in front of my eyes and I was back in the year 1956.

Final verdict: 4 shooting stars. The series as a whole didn't blow me away, but they're certainly very quick, easy reads. I think readers who enjoy time travel and history but aren't super picky about historical accuracy or sci-fi notions would enjoy this series. If you really want to figure out all the time travel details then things get complicated, but it's impressive that the author went to that much work. It seems like if you tried to connect all the dots it would probably make sense... Anyway, I think this series would actually make a really entertaining movie. 

 

Disclaimer: I received an ARC for review from Raincoast Books.

Sapphire Blue: A Snapshot

Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier

"Gwen’s life has been a rollercoaster since she discovered she was the Ruby, the final member of the secret time-traveling Circle of Twelve. In between searching through history for the other time-travelers and asking for a bit of their blood (gross!), she’s been trying to figure out what all the mysteries and prophecies surrounding the Circle really mean.

 

At least Gwen has plenty of help. Her best friend Lesley follows every lead diligently on the Internet. James the ghost teaches Gwen how to fit in at an eighteenth century party. And Xemerius, the gargoyle demon who has been following Gwen since he caught her kissing Gideon in a church, offers advice on everything. Oh, yes. And of course there is Gideon, the Diamond. One minute he’s very warm indeed; the next he’s freezing cold. Gwen’s not sure what’s going on there, but she’s pretty much destined to find out." (from Goodreads)

The subject: a girl trying to juggle a time-travel mystery, a hot-and-cold romance, a snooty cousin and a snarky gargoyle.

The setting: present-day Britain, along with a whole slew of different times and places!

Shutter speed: Slower than I would have liked, all things considered. Not a lot actually happens in this one — I would've liked more action, fight scenes and dramatic tension. I thought it dragged a little, it seemed like there wasn't that much momentum pushing it forward.

What's in the background? The comic relief provided by the gargoyle. He was quite funny, and although his jokes did get kind of tiresome partway through, he definitely added some levity to the book. Overall he was just an enjoyable character!

Also, Gwen gets to wear some really awesome dresses.

Zoom in on: Great-aunt Maddy! We didn't see her very much in this one, which is a shame because she can be humorous.

Anything out of focus?  I kept losing track of the next step as they jumped around from one century to another — the whole time-travel angle definitely complicates matters. I found myself thinking things like, "Does this person know that this will happen in the future?" (Then again, I suppose that is a necessary evil of just about any time-travel story.) They don't really get that much further in terms of figuring out how everything fits together and what the 'ultimate destiny' is. This is the type of series where each book serves as part of a larger story arc, rather than having any sort of internally contained one.

It's definitely more about the relationship between Gwen and Gideon, which – while really cute – I also found frustrating. They have so much trouble with communication and they're always keeping secrets from each other. Gideon is particularly moody in this one, although he does have some reasons.

Ready? Say... Time travel, gargoyles and teen angst, oh my!

Click! 3.5 shooting stars. Some things frustrated me, but I still enjoyed it quite a bit and whipped through it in a day. All the same, at the end I was left feeling dissatisfied, as it didn't feel like much had been solved or accomplished.  

Just a couple suggestions: I think it'd be a good idea to re-read the first book before starting this one if it's been a while, since Sapphire Blue drops you into it head-first and you're going to be lost about what's going on if you haven't (I skimmed Ruby Red beforehand and it's good I did!) Also, although I read this as an e-book I suspect it might be more helpful to read a physical copy, because it's difficult to remember all the characters' names and connections without flipping back to check the family trees.

Disclaimer: I received this as an e-book for review from the publisher.

Cross My Palm: YA Fantasy

This is a series of posts I'm doing discussing current trends in YA genres and what might be in store for the future. This is just based on my own observations of books and what I've seen publishers/authors/other bloggers talking about.


Sorry it's been so long since the last post in this series! You can catch up on all the previous posts here (contemporary, sci-fi/dystopian, historical, and paranormal YA have already been covered), but this time it's YA fantasy trends.

• Time travel is the next "hot" topic. I think time travel stories hold a lot of potential for creativity — and apparently publishers think so too, with offerings such as the Hourglass series by Myra McEntire, the Ruby Red series by Kerstin Gier, the River of Time series by Lisa Bergren, and Tempest by Julie Cross. Not always "fantasy" in the strictest sense, I know, but time travel books kind of fit into several genres...

• Retellings — both fairytale and mythological — are holding their own. On the fairy tale side of things, we've got books like the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, Jackson Pearce's fairy tale companion books (Fathomless is releasing this year), Queen of Glass by Sarah J. Maass, and Enchanted by Alethea Kontis. In terms of mythology, there's a whole subsection just for "the underworld" stories, like Meg Cabot's Abandon trilogy, the Sirenz series by Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman, the Everneath series by Brodi Ashton, and The Goddess Test series by Aimee Carter. Other mythological retellings (or stories with mythological aspects) include the Starcrossed series by Josephine Angelini, the Medusa Girls series by Tera Lynn Childs, Starling by Lesley Livington, and the Gods & Monsters series by Kelly Keaton. And there are even a few upcoming fantasy retellings of classic tales like Jane Eyre (Ironskin by Tina Connolly) and the Ugly Duckling (The Sweetest Spell by Suzanne Selfors).

On a related note, fairytale retellings seem to be popping up in TV and movies as well! Any of you who have not yet tuned into the TV show Once Upon A Time, you guys are missing out. And I haven't watched Grimm but I know that it's a CSI-style show based on the Grimm fairytales. Also, be on the lookout this year for the movies Snow White and the Huntsman (yes, it stars Kristen Stewart – but seriously, check out the cool trailer!) and Mirror Mirror (which has Julia Roberts in it, even though the trailer makes me think a lot of the comedy might not be my style). 

• Here be dragons — well, a few, anyway. Dragons are no vampires in YA, at least not yet. But there seems to be the start of a renewed interest in these fire-breathing monsters, with books like Sophie Jordan's Firelight series, Seraphina by Rachel Hartman, Incarnate by Jodi Meadows, Prophecy by Ellen Oh, and Dragonswood by Janet Lee Carey.

• Faeries are in, but elves and dwarves are not. Tolkien-esque fantasy does not yet seem to have made its way back into popularity, but faeries still hold an allure for readers. (Note the spelling there: by and large these are the unpredictable, can't-always-be-trusted "fey," not the Tinkerbell type of fairies.) Examples of upcoming faerie releases include Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier, The Treachery of Beautiful Things by Ruth Frances Long, The Wood Queen by Karen Mahoney, The Falconer by Elizabeth May, The Torn Wing by Kiki Hamilton, and Luminance Hour by Ryan Graudin.

• Thieves and assassins are stealing readers' hearts. In a way, I think this is kind of the fantasy version of the trend in historical YA for secret agents and spies. I guess there's something about the seedy underbelly of a city that draws readers in... Recent or upcoming books that fit into this category are Thief's Covenant by Ari Marmell, Mastiff by Tamora Pierce, Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maass, Grave Mercy by R. L. LaFevers, and Liar's Moon by Elizabeth C. Bunce.

• Oddly enough, "touch" seems to be an important theme in fantasy (and paranormal) YA these days. I don't know if this is just a fluke or what, but with books like Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder, Touched by Corrine Jackson, the A Touch trilogy by Leah Clifford, Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, the Clarity series by Kim Harrington, and the Curse Workers series by Holly Black...it seems like this idea is becoming popular. What do you think?

• Unusual settings (for fantasy) and PoC characters are making an appearance. I wouldn't say yet that either of these aspects are common in YA fantasy, but hopefully others will follow these authors' leads and make it happen. We're talking books such as Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff, the Wildefire series by Karsten Knight, the Daughter of Smoke & Bone series by Laini Taylor, Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst, The Chaos by Nalo Hopkinson, and Valkyrie Rising by Ingrid Paulson.

So, what are your thoughts on trends in YA fantasy? Is the "power of touch" something concrete or just coincidence? Will we keep seeing more PoC characters and different settings in the future? Will there be a return of the elves? Let me know what you see for the future of YA fantasy!

Cover Reveal: My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris

I'm pleased to be able to help out with the cover reveal for Rachel Harris' upcoming novel My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century. Here's the blurb about it from Goodreads:

"On the precipice of her sixteenth birthday, the last thing lone wolf Cat Crawford wants is an extravagant gala thrown by her bubbly stepmother and well-meaning father. So even though Cat knows the family’s trip to Florence, Italy, is a peace offering, she embraces the magical city and all it offers. But when her curiosity leads her to an unusual gypsy tent, she exits . . . right into Renaissance Firenze.

Thrust into the sixteenth century armed with only a backpack full of contraband future items, Cat joins up with her ancestors, the sweet Alessandra and protective Cipriano, and soon falls for the gorgeous aspiring artist Lorenzo. But when the much-older Niccolo starts sniffing around, Cat realizes that an unwanted birthday party is nothing compared to an unwanted suitor full of creeptastic amore.

Can she find her way back to modern times before her Italian adventure turns into an Italian forever?"

And now the cover!

Entangled Publishing also asked me to share an excerpt:

Alessandra jerks back like I just suggested she prance around the square naked or something. “No! I believe I understand your meaning, and Lorenzo is certainly not my suitor. He is like a brother to me—the three of us grew up together.”

She resumes walking and I fall in step beside her, understanding there has to be more to the story. And as we near the end of the row, I finally ask, “If you’re not into the guy, then what’s the problem?”

At that same moment, a rich, deep chuckle hits my ears. My stomach involuntarily clenches and my gaze sharpens on the back of this mysterious Lorenzo.

Alessandra sighs. “That is the problem.” She places her hand on my arm and solemnly looks me in the eyes. “You must be careful. Lorenzo is beautiful, and it is not uncommon for a girl to walk away from meeting him with a piece of her heart left behind. But he is just eighteen, and not yet ready for marriage.”

I roll my eyes and laugh, then realize she’s serious. “Yeah, I assure you, there’s no danger on my end. I’m not exactly looking for marriage myself.” Because that would be crazy-town.

Alessandra wrinkles her nose as if she doesn’t believe me, but she removes her hand. We close the distance and Cipriano flashes me an open, honest to goodness, lighthearted smile.

“Lorenzo, this is the cousin I was telling you about.”

Slowly the guy turns and I fall head first into the richest chocolate-brown eyes I’ve ever seen. He blinks and long, luscious lashes feather across his bronzed cheeks. I can feel myself gawking, but I physically can’t drag my eyes away. Lorenzo doesn’t smirk or act all conceited, either. He simply stares back, his eyes casually skimming over me, causing my skin to warm and break out in a whole body tingle.

Time seems to stop, and the sounds of the market mute. Alessandra was right. This boy is beautiful.

And he’s looking at me.

My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century releases on September 11, 2012, and is available for pre-order from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

What do you think of the cover?

Ruby Red: In A Nutshell

 Goodreads' description:

"Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era! Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon, the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust."

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

My reaction: It didn't take me long to get caught up in the fun that is this book! I noticed right away that it has a British touch to it which is handled quite nicely — I'm not sure if that's the translator's doing or the author's, but either way it managed to use enough British expressions to keep the reader grounded in the setting without overloading them with so much jargon as to make it incomprehensible. (Plus, I learned that skipping a class is called "bunking off," which just sounds so much more awesome.)

The tone of this novel is light and charming, and it's easy to breeze through (I read it in about a day's time). Generally the writing has a bit of an old-fashioned feel, even during the modern-day sections. The dialogue for the teens isn't always the most authentic (they're all very polite and well-behaved for the most part),  and yet — perhaps because of the London setting — this didn't really bother me much. (Maybe British teens really do talk like that, what do I know?) There is plenty of mystery, lots of hints at secrets and such, but it always maintains an entertaining vibe, never taking itself too seriously.

It does take a bit to get going (the prologue will confuse you entirely, but it becomes clearer after you read some more) and the faster-paced sections were the parts where they traveled back in time. The modern scenes were a bit slower, as they mostly involved information being revealed (in fact, there was one chapter that I felt was a rather heavy "info-dump"). I did find it somewhat irritating that a lot of knowledge is withheld from Gwyneth, and thus from the reader, without a good explanation as to why. Secrets are kept from her (and then gradually revealed) by characters who appear to be on her side and really don't have a sound reason for not telling her sooner about matters that involve her.

Gwyneth's voice was a bit inconsistent for me, as I found that she sounded a little younger or a little older than sixteen at various times. I had a few problems with her character (discussed below) but her heart is in the right place, and she does have a good sense of humour. Indeed, I found myself laughing out loud at various lines throughout the novel. There are many side characters to swell out the cast, and while it might be a bit difficult to keep them straight at first, several of them are quite memorable and distinct. Great-aunt Maddy is particularly hilarious, and Madame Rossini is spot-on in her role as the almost caricature-ish French fashion designer.

I enjoyed the back-and-forth between Gideon and Gwyneth as they attempt to annoy each other. Gwyneth's attraction to Gideon is believable; he may be arrogant (okay, there's really no "may" about it) but he understands his responsibilities and does his best to keep Gwyneth safe. I was less convinced of the interest on his side, since for most of it he appears to think very little of her (more than once making it obvious he believes her to be shallow and a burden on the mission) and I think his opinion changed a bit too suddenly for my liking. Still, I did think they were awfully cute together and I'm certainly looking forward to seeing their relationship develop further in the next one.

Best aspect: I found the background created for the Guardians — things like the significance of the number 12 and the connection to the philosopher's stone — delightfully intriguing. I also really enjoyed the scenes where they traveled back in time; there was usually bound to be some action happening whenever they did! It was fun to imagine Gwyneth and Gideon in their old-fashioned costumes. Actually, the whole time-travel gene set-up was quite creative. Interestingly, the gene makes it necessary to travel back in time a certain amount (and if you don't time-travel under your own control, using a chronograph, then your body will make the decision for you — and then who knows where you might end up?!)

If I could change something... To be honest, certain aspects of Gwyneth's character annoyed me. Just about all of her relatives seem to think she's not very bright, and she appears to accept this as part of who she is. She doesn't seem to care about improving her knowledge, even of the time travel matters she's been caught up in, instead leaving the research (which mostly means Google searches) to her friend Lesley. It was this apparent apathy, more than her lack of book-learning prowess, that frustrated me. I did sometimes have to agree with her relatives, since Gwyneth was on a few occasions slow to catch on to things I'm sure the reader could follow just fine (and even worse, she has no qualms about pointing it out). She takes affront at Gideon's implications that she's ditzy/shallow/ignorant, and yet she doesn't try very hard to disprove them. However, I felt like at other times she was selling herself short in the intelligence department.  There seems to be a bit of character growth starting towards the end, so I'm hoping that continues in the sequel. I'd like to see her mature, becoming less self-focused and embracing her time-travel ability (she sometimes comes off as a bit whiny about it). I'm hoping she'll be more active in the next book, taking the initiative rather than letting things happen to her and others decide.

Also, a warning right now — the ending will leave you hanging completely! If you're like me you'll have a ton of questions that aren't answered. Unfortunately it does leave it feeling like an uncompleted story arc — it just sort of ends in the middle of all the build-up. But I suppose to a certain degree the tactic worked, because it also left me wanting to get my hands on the next one to find out what happens and how everything ties together.

In five words or less: a rollicking time-travel romp!

Quote:



"You'd think that would have been forgotten long ago. But no, no sooner has a little grass grown over it than some clumsy camel comes along and rakes it all up again."

Caroline giggled. She was probably imagining Aunt Glenda as a camel.

"This is not a TV series, Maddy," said Lady Arista sharply.

"Thank goodness, no, it isn't," said Great-aunt Maddy. "If it were, I'd have lost track of the plot ages ago."

Read if you liked: Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough

Final verdict: 4 shooting stars. Who doesn't want to imagine dressing in fancy gowns, traveling back in time, witnessing sword fights and talking to your now-dead relatives? Just be prepared for an abrupt ending that leaves you with plenty of questions.

And if you haven't seen the trailer, check it out:



Disclaimer: I received a copy of Ruby Red from the publisher for review.

Once a Witch: Review

I was a bit dubious about this book originally, just because witches have been done to death in literature and I wasn't sure how much fresh new insight could be brought to the topic. However, I noticed that it got some good reviews so I decided to give it a try.

Carolyn MacCullough's Once a Witch centers around Tamsin, a girl born into a family full of witches, prophesied to be a beacon among them - who is now seventeen years old and has yet to show a glimmer of Talent. Frustrated at constantly being the "family misfit," Tamsin jumps at the chance to prove herself when a stranger strolls into her family's bookshop - and undercover magical agency - needing help in finding a particular clock in the picture he carries. The stranger mistakes her for her powerful older sister, Rowena, and Tamsin does nothing to dissuade him of this notion, instead promising to take on the task. But it proves more difficult than she'd thought, and she turns to her childhood friend Gabriel, whose magical Talent is finding anything he searches for. Gabriel soon realizes the clock doesn't exist in their world - or rather, in their time. When they both Travel back to 1899 in order to find it, they unleash a series of events they never expected, putting Tamsin's sister Rowena into the clutches of a man who feasts on power over others. It is then that Tamsin discovers she is not as Talentless as she may have believed...and it's just in time, because she will need to figure out how to use her newfound powers to save the ones she cares about before it's too late.

Carolyn MacCullough does breathe new life into the interpretation of witches and magic, although she  keeps to some traditions (such as incantation circles and invoking the elements.) I enjoyed the idea that the witches each have their own unique power, be it reading minds, teleportation, persuasion, etc.


HERE THERE BE SPOILERS:

Of course, the exception to this is Tamsin, really, in that her power basically can negate anyone else's powers (and moreover, she can learn anyone's Talent provided they use it on her often enough). I wasn't expecting this to be her Talent, so that was a bit of a surprise, although I thought that the concept of others' Talents 'rubbing off' on her, so to speak, was a little too convenient. She could become awfully powerful that way rather quickly (indeed, by the end of the book she is throwing fireballs everywhere and freezing people on the spot). I was also a little disappointed that the book succumbed to the archetype of the unlikely hero/heroine suddenly discovering they possess great powers no one else does and that they are the one destined to save everybody and destroy evil. However, I suppose the novel wouldn't have been quite so interesting if Tamsin really had been so very Talentless as she originally thought.

I also thought that all the loose ends weren't tied up so well. For one thing, what exactly does Tamsin do when she touches the clock in the train station? How does her grandmother's power affect her? This isn't explained well enough for my liking. Not to mention how Tamsin suddenly becomes the Keeper at the end (and why Alistair gives up and goes back in time - I'm assuming that's where the door leads - without Rowena. What does he hope to accomplish?) I did think it was cool that Tamsin's "clocket" as she calls it becomes the object to hold all the power (that clocket was mentioned way earlier in the book and I didn't suspect a thing!)

Hence I am really hoping for a sequel. I mean, the bad guy seemed to be vanquished kind of easily at the end. I wouldn't expect Alistair to give in without way more of a fight. Plus, Tamsin's going to have some major life changes now that she has Keeper responsibilities. And whatever becomes of Agatha? We never find out.

These quibbles aside, I definitely enjoyed the mystery that surrounded Alistair, the clock, and the history between the two families. For the first half of the novel I was really lost as to what was going on, but not so confused that I gave up reading - just enough to make me keep puzzling about it. In retrospect, things make more sense (or about as much sense as a story involving time travel can make), and MacCullough obviously didn't want to give everything away right from the start.

I liked Tamsin's voice as well - she has a dry, self-deprecating sense of humour I could relate to and appreciate. Sure, she complains about being the only one in the family without Talent, but given her situation, I don't really blame her. However, sometimes she came off as sounding too mature for her age (she herself admits to being "self-aware" which most teens aren't), and yet she sometimes does some very immature things. For instance - I could not figure out why she would leap into the past to find a clock for a stranger when she doesn't even understand his motives. Surely she would know that time travel usually has grave repercussions? (For that matter, why does Gabriel go along with it so easily? Sheer curiosity? Or just to please Tamsin?) I understand, obviously, that this event was critical to furthering the plot, but surely she could have had a slightly better reason for it. Simply wanting to "prove herself" to her family and sister (and what would she be proving except that Gabriel has the ability to find things in the past?) really isn't good enough to risk messing up the fabric of time for a man you haven't even done a background check on yet.

The romance that develops between her and Gabriel was sweet and not too rushed, although of course you could see it coming a mile away (if anything, my complaint would be that there could have been a bit more of it!) Still, I did enjoy Gabriel's character and the lightness he brought to the conversations between the two of them. The only thing I didn't really like was that Gabriel sometimes prioritized Tamsin's wishes over the smarter choice of action (for example, when he blindly Travels back in time with her).

Finally, I thought Alistair was a great villain up until the climax, where he seemed to lose some of his edge. The way he fed on Rowena, draining her while building up his own energy was intriguing (although I'd like to know a bit more about how it works, and how he was able to influence Rowena so strongly. Also, what exactly does he use Agatha for?) I must admit, I really disliked Rowena too; the snooty, condescending, admired-by-all older sister was characterized to perfection, and I admired Tamsin for fighting as hard for Rowena's life as she did (considering how much Tamsin also appeared to dislike her). However, Alistair was written in such a nasty fashion that MacCullough succeeded in making me feel a little sorry for Rowena (though once Rowena returned to normal she went right back to being very irritating, of course).

END OF SPOILERS.

Overall, a fun read, particularly if you don't want to think too hard about the intricacies of a plot involving a feud between two magical sides across time. My rating: 3.5 out of 5 shooting stars.

Banshees, Changelings, and Time-Travelers

So it's been a little while since my last review, and in order to make up for it this post will have three! I may not have been blogging so faithfully but I have indeed kept up with my reading.

1.) Heir to Sevenwaters - Juliet Marillier (Adult)

I hadn't realized there was a fourth book in this series; I had read the first two years and years ago, and had heard the third wasn't very good so I hadn't bothered to continue (I did mostly enjoy the first one, and found the second one interesting, albeit a bit weird and complicated.) Still, I decided to try out her most recent one as the premise sounded intriguing, and I am most certainly glad I did! This may be my favorite of the three I have read, in fact.

The family tree of Sevenwaters is extremely complex, so to keep matters simple, all you really need to know is that the protagonist Clodagh is the daughter of Lord Sean of Sevenwaters. Her mother gives birth to the long-desired male heir to the estate towards the beginning of the novel, but things go terribly wrong when the boy is switched for an Otherworld changeling while in Clodagh's care. Clodagh is blamed, and the situation worsens when she realizes that she is the only one who sees the changeling for what he really is - to the rest of her family he appears as only sticks and stones. Deemed a liar, Clodagh flees with the changeling to search for an entrance to the Otherworld in a bid to get her brother back. She almost immediately bumps into Cathal, a man talented at fighting and seeing the future, who proves to be an immense help along the way. Together they batter their way through countless obstacles, and Clodagh's affection for both the changeling she has named Becan, and the steadfastedly loyal yet infuriatingly mysterious Cathal, deepens. But when she finally comes face-to-face with the faerie lord who has stolen her brother, a secret she never expected threatens to destroy any future she could possibly have with the man she's given her heart to.

Juliet Marillier's quality of writing is excellent as always, and although some references to events in previous novels were lost on me, the story can easily be enjoyed by someone unfamiliar with the rest of the series. I particularly liked seeing the love Clodagh develops for Becan, the changeling who is a) a constant reminder that her brother has been kidnapped, and b) a being that resembles a tree more than a human. Cathal was also an appealing character, although occasionally his refusal to open up and explain things to Clodagh became irritating (especially when it was clear that if he'd shared a bit more information, they might avoid some of the messes they get into entirely). Still, his taciturn nature was compensated by his devotion to protecting Clodagh no matter what the cost. Honorable mention goes to the faerie Lord of the Oak, who was one of those villains we love to hate.

Once Clodagh's journey began, the plot was perfectly paced, with the right amount of exciting near-death moments and character-building scenes to give the reader a sense of the danger Clodagh and Cathal were facing while allowing for a romance to develop. Perhaps the beginning chapters were a bit slow-moving, but it was needed given that this is the fourth in a series, and the history between Clodagh and Cathal needed to be set. Overall, a fantastic journey right to the very end!

My rating: 4.5 out of 5 shooting stars.

2.) My Soul to Take - Rachel Vincent

I honestly wasn't expecting all that much from this book - it looked mildly interesting but I thought it would be a typical teen paranormal romance. However, I was happy to be wrong! Sure, the plot isn't terribly intricate, but I really liked the premise: Kaylee Cavanaugh is a bean sidhe, or banshee, who can't help but scream whenever someone is about to die. Although she is naive to her true nature, the death of three young girls in her town in three days strikes her as alarming, and she sets out to unravel what she believes is murder.

This was an easy book to breeze through, but it held my attention (I never found myself really skimming) and I thought that Vincent implemented the idea of banshees in a modern-day setting very artfully. Unlike the myriad of vampire, angel, and ghost books floating around the YA universe, the topic of banshees is a new one. Also, Nash was a wonderful romantic interest, and although he was considered the "hottest guy in school" it wasn't a stretch of the imagination that he would fall for Kaylee, since they are both banshees (you learn this fairly early on so it's not really a spoiler!)

My Soul to Take is followed by two more sequels (and there may be more planned, I don't know), and I am looking forward to reading them. For one thing, I want to know more about Tod and his past, and also his relationship with Nash. And...I can't tell at this point, but do I sense a love triangle in the making???

Excellent start to a fresh paranormal YA series. 4 out of 5 shooting stars.

3.) The Hourglass Door - Lisa Mangum (this review may be somewhat SPOILER-ish)

I can't quite decide how I feel about this one. It was a little bit different than most of the YA I read, and while I liked the uniqueness of how Mangum tackles the concept of time travel, some of it felt a bit flat to me. The story in a nutshell:

Abby's life is going along just fine when a mysterious new guy named Dante shakes everything up. Time seems to freeze when she's with him, and then she starts getting glimpses of the future... Despite everything that's warning her that Dante is more than just an Italian student on exchange, Abby can't resist the almost magnetic pull he's exerting on her. But Dante's secret is so dangerous it could threaten her life as well.

The good things:

I really couldn't quite figure out exactly what Dante's mystery was for the longest time. I knew it had something to do with time, but the prologue had been dramatically obscure and though I'm sure I guessed 'time travel' at some point, I really didn't understand all the ins and outs of how it worked and why it caused certain things to happen. However, this was actually really great because it kept me guessing and wanting to read more.

The metaphor of the river and the bank was philosophical, and yet it was actually steeped in concrete reality (with an actual 'river' of glass and a bank). I enjoyed this interpretation of how someone might feel 'in' and 'out' of the flow of time, and why Dante was bound to keep flitting between the two.

The villains were well written - I liked that they weren't so much pure evil as just totally selfish (and I empathized with them a bit too, because they really did want to go home and felt trapped in Abby's time). I also thought the way they channeled their emotions into their music so that their audience was also affected was quite ingenious... This really emphasizes how much music can move us in real life, and the emotional kind of reactions we can have to it.

The bad things:

I didn't really buy the romance between Dante and Abby that much. Or maybe it was just that Dante's character didn't come off as feeling that realistic. It may have just been that Mangum wanted to illustrate how young men from 16th-century Italy behaved, and remain true to the language and social conventions from back then, but he seemed a little too perfect. Also, while I could understand Abby's interest in Dante ("mysterious good-looking guy with a secret"), Dante's feelings for her seem to come a bit out of the blue. Perhaps this will be explained in the sequel but in this book at least there was no explanation for why he chose her (and yet he significantly calls her his "Beatrice" so it's pretty obvious he thinks they're destined for each other).

I wanted the metaphor of the river/bank to be more thoroughly explained. Time travel can get very sticky, it's true, but the idea of the "balance" was just a little too vague. I think it's a great idea, but I couldn't picture it very clearly in my mind as I read. (And since a major problem revolves around upsetting the "balance" it would be nice to have a better sense of exactly what that entails.)

Also, we never got to find out why Abby started seeing the future. However, this may well be elucidated in the sequel so I will wait and see.

Overall, I enjoyed the execution of the mystery surrounding time travel, but the character portrayal and development was somewhat lacking. I'll read the sequel at some point, but I'm not on pins-and-needles waiting for its release.

My rating: 3.5 out of 5 shooting stars.